The future of Xavier

During the course of my four years at this institution, there has been one week I have always dreaded. It is always filled with mediocre pop music, brightly colored shirts and frivolous interactions between students.Much like a terrible house party, Student Government Association elections are something I just can't deal with anymore. To make matters worse, this year the campaigning period will be a mindnumbing two weeks instead of the usual one. Granted, there will only be two days of outdoor campaigning, so I may only have to endure hearing Ke$ha half a dozen times as opposed to the normal two or three dozen in past years. However, this still isn't likely to change the frivolous nature in which the candidates try and earn your vote. During my four years here, I have come to the unfortunate conclusion that the biggest factor in winning the election is simply knowing the most people. "Vote for XYZ because they are my friends" or "I'm voting for ABC because that's who my roommate's sister said is the best" are comments I've heard as justifiation for voting for someone. I've rarely encountered someone who is voting for a particular ticket because of how they stand on the issues or because they have unique ideas to make Xavier a better place. It's because of this that for the first three years I spent here, I have never bothered to take any student government election seriously. I've written in Jeremy Lin and Rebecca Black as candidates before because I've cynically felt that these elections were nothing more than a middle school popularity contest. This year, however, I had the privilege to discuss with every ticket their plans if they were fortunate enough to be elected. I heard numerous unique ideas that could help improve Xavier and creative ways to solve some of the challenges this university will face in the future. I can't question the candidates' passion for improving Xavier, but I can question the way in which a candidate is chosen. Underclassmen, I'd encourage you to look at the platforms of the candidates and determine which ticket could feasibly improve your remaining time here. Seniors, although you might never actually experience the changes that would come with a particular ticket, maybe you'd vote for who will make Xavier a place you would be proud of when you come back to visit. Most importantly, use logic to vote. An uninformed voter is the biggest threat to democracy. You see it frequently in presidential elections. Most often, a young person will vote for who their friends support, what their parents say, how their professors feel or in a way that they think will most strongly refl ect what their religion would want. These are all factors that can be taken into account when voting, but what is most important is for you to vote in a way that refl ects what you value. If you're not a big fan of sustainability, don't vote for a ticket that emphasizes going green on their platform. If you think we need to focus on student transportation then vote for the platform that has the best ideas in that area. You were admitted to this university because you have the ability to think and act logically. Do it. Let's not have to suffer through two days of the same pop music for nothing.